


Break My Heart

by darlingsdream



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Relationships, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Hurt Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, M/M, Minor Lance/Nyma (Voltron), Mutual Pining, Oblivious Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Roomates, Socially Awkward Keith (Voltron), youtubers au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-24 14:55:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21101327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darlingsdream/pseuds/darlingsdream
Summary: When Lance's ex, Nyma, somehow comes back into their lives, he needs to find a way to convince her that he's in a relationship before she tries to shade him on twitter.OR, the YouTuber, fake relationship, roommate AU no one asked for.





	Break My Heart

**Author's Note:**

> i kinda got really inspired to do this after watching sam and colby and TFIL all the time. so like
> 
> enjoy :)

It was quiet in the house, for once. The fans had been turned off in favor of cracking the windows open and letting the cool crisp air of autumn to spill in. No one was recording for the day either. Hunk was out for the day at the gym with Allura and Adam, Coran was over at one of his friend’s houses, and Shiro was out of town shooting some explore video.

The only ones in the house today were Katie, who was resigned in her room on the first floor, as well as Keith and Lance, who were sitting in Keith’s room. Keith was laying on his bed with Kosmo curled up beside him, his snout buried in the crook of his neck while Lance sat at the desk across from the bed, editing their previously recorded video from last week.

“Today’s Thursday, right?” Lance grumbled as he leaned across the desk in search of one of the SD cards. Raising his head and resting his chin on Kosmo’s head, Keith looked over at his phone beside him. Turning it over, he clicked at the home button.

“Yeah,” he reported before he turned his phone back face first on the sheets. Shifting back on his pillow, he set his attention back on the back of Lance’s head. Once he had settled back in his chair once finding his SD card, the sound of computer keys being tapped echoed again in the silent room. It was a soothing sound to Keith. Something familiar.

Kosmo stirred slightly, raising his head and scooting up closer onto Keith’s chest before settling on top of him. Carding a hand through his long blue fur, once black before Allura and Shiro dyed it as a prank, Keith planted a soft kiss on the top of the pet’s head.

A content sigh left Keith as he leaned back on his pillow, eyes shutting. It was somewhere between three and four in the afternoon. As usual, Lance was in his room with him, keeping him _ “company” _ while he edited the last video they did together. 

It wasn’t that he minded Lance’s presence. Since he had moved into the Voltron household seven months ago, Lance would usually come in his room and help him edit videos. Lance also insisted that Keith, being the loner he was, needed more company. When Lance came in to bug him, they’d usually talk about past videos, views and income, new video ideas, and Lance’s family. His time with Lance was usually calm and mundane, and he really enjoyed it despite how he pretended to despise it.

Keith was generally used to being alone and closed off. Foster homes were hectic, moving from one country to another was exhausting, and after being adopted by the Shiroganes, he was very suspicious about how long his stay would last. When it surpassed three years, he figured he found a forever home. However, once Shiro, the only brotherly figure he had, moved out to LA in pursuit of a content creator career, he was lonelier than ever. After a year, Shiro insisted Keith move out to LA with him and his housemates, start making videos with them, and think about getting a job.

Moving into the Voltron house was odd. Everything was usually loud. Yells could be heard from everywhere as well as laughter. People would be swimming, summoning weird spirits, pulling pranks, and crying. Things would break, lights would go out, and music would be played loudly. Keith felt like he didn’t fit in at all in their noisy group. He didn’t laugh like the others did, he didn’t know anyone besides Shiro and Adam, he didn’t make videos and he wasn’t known for being “fun”.

Lance was the first one in the household he really got to know other than Shiro and his boyfriend. Lance’s room was right across from his. When they had first met, it was at the airport when Keith came to visit before actually moving out to LA. He was waiting at the gate with Shiro, smiling softly and introducing himself immediately. When Keith finally moved in, Lance would usually knock at his door, asking if he wanted to go out with the team, or if he’d like to watch a movie. 

When Keith first received a good quality camera, a gift given to him by the entire Voltron team for his nineteenth birthday, he confessed he had no idea how to do any of this stuff. Lance had quickly offered to help him with videos, and since then, he found himself in a tight friendship with Lance.

It was strange to get close to someone so quick. Keith was used to people leaving, used to not staying in one spot for long. He’d been all over the place his entire life and never had the time to make proper friends. It came as a surprise to him when Lance started making his presence known in Keith’s everyday life.

Another sigh escaped Keith. He cracked an eye open, spotting Lance still sitting in front of the computer, hunched over slightly.

Running his tongue over his top teeth, Keith clenched his hands beside Kosmo. Some days he’d have to admit, he didn’t just see Lance as a friend. There was a lot about Lance that Keith liked, like how bright he was. He was always optimistic about things. Always looking at the bright side and jumping to the best conclusions before the worst. He liked how Lance was so lively with everything, how he’d have this spark in his eyes doing things he enjoyed, or how his laughs sounded like joy in its purest form. He liked how expresionate Lance was. He liked his humor and his smiles.

In conclusion, he’d admit, but only to himself, he did indeed like Lance as more than a friend.

Though he’d rather keep that unknown fact to himself, keeping it far from Lance. That way, things would never get awkward. He wouldn’t get harshly rejected and lose one of the best friendships he’d ever had. He wouldn’t make the other housemates feel awkward about it either.

It was as simple as that.

“Hey, Keith?”

Humming in response, he pushed himself up with his elbows. Lance turned in the chair, pulling the headphones out from the computer. “I didn’t know if you wanted to keep this part in?” Pushing away from the table and giving Keith room to see the screen, he hit play.

The black screen switched to a still shot of the front of the house. It was dark out, the only light coming from the outside lights. Allura’s distinctive laughter could be heard in the background, heavy footsteps and screams following. “Katie! Keith! You’re dead!” Shiro’s voice boomed over as Katie’s small form ran into view, curled in black sheets, her glasses falling off her nose. She was screaming, pulling she sheet over her head as she ran out of the shot again.

Keith ran into the shot next, covered in blue paint, hair slicked back as he ran backward with his hands up. “It’s just a prank! I’m sorry, that was hilarious!” Keith laughed, stumbling over his feet.

Running into the shot was Shiro, holding a squirming purple paint covered Lance over his shoulder. Without hesitation, Shiro dropped Lance in front of Keith. The two squealed, slipping on the paint around them and bumped into each other, Lance falling into Keith’s arms. The two paused before laughing loudly, blue paint mixing with purple as they held onto each other for support.

The camera was plucked out of its original position, pulled closer onto the two. Katie’s laugher could be heard over the screaming of the others as she brought the camera closer to the pair, just in time to catch a close up of Lance dragging his hand across Keith’s cheek, smudging purple with blue.

Lance leaned over the computer again, hitting the pause button before crossing his arms. “Keep or cut?”

Leaning back on his bed, Keith shrugged. “Keep it. Why would you be confused on cutting it?” he questioned with an eyebrow raised at the ceiling.

With a huff, Lance grabbed his headphones from the side of the table. “No reason,” he murmured in response as he plugged the headphones back in and slipped them on.

With heavy eyes, Keith blinked at the back of Lance’s head before twisting over onto his side, wrapping his arms around Kosmo. He sighed heavily into his pillow, eyes darting from the lovable puppy to the open window where afternoon light spilled into the room. The leaves of the tree beside the house were swaying back and forth. It was almost mesmerizing.

Curling up against Kosmo, Keith allowed his eyes to shut peacefully, tension in his body leaving instantly.

* * *

When Keith’s eyes snapped open again, the shade on the window was pulled down slightly, just enough to keep the sun from his eyes. The doorbell was ringing.

Once.

Twice.

A third time.

The sound of wheels across a wooden floor was apparent in Keith’s tired state. A small thud followed and then the quiet creak of his bedroom door.

The doorbell was still going off like a child was continuously pressing the button. He assumed it must have been Hunk, Allura, and Adam back from the gym. They must have forgotten their keys at the house. It wouldn’t be the first time this happened.

Kosmo, from in-between Keith’s loose arms, perked up instantly. His ears flopped back as he squirmed out of Keith’s grasp, flipping over the side of the bed. Keith’s tired eyes stayed locked with the leaves outside as the pitter-patter of animal feet trotted out of his room.

Tempted to continue his nap, he stretched his legs out slightly, rolling his head into his pillow.

“It’s for me! I got it!” Katie shouted loudly, banging footsteps following. The doorbell stopped for a moment, silence replacing the noise before loud banging followed. Over and over again.

Distantly, he could hear the front door being unlocked. The knocking stopped. It was silent again, for a split second, Keith really had hope he could continue his nap in peace. However, Kosmo’s loud and deep growl killed any hope he had.

Sitting up instantly, Keith stared at his open door into the hallway. Kosmo rarely ever barked at people.

Loud growling replaced the barking. Pulling himself out of his bed, he ran a hand through his hair, rushing into the hallway to the staircase.

“Woah, Kosmo! Hey, buddy!” Katie shouted. “It’s okay boy, calm down. See? Look? Everything’s okay!”

Making his way down to the first floor into the main hallway, Keith could see the front door was shut now. Katie was standing between the closed doors and Kosmo, who was bowed down growling in front of her.

Lance was kneeling down beside Kosmo now, patting his sides. “What happened, Pidge?” Lance instantly questioned, wrapping his arms around Kosmo. The dog let out another harty growl at Katie before flopping over onto Lance’s knee.

“I invited someone over for a collab and they just got here! Kosmo had a nutty when I opened the door!”

“Maybe they freaked him out with all the knocking and doorbell ringing,” Keith commented. His voice was groggy and scratchy, his hair a mess, and clothes wrinkled. It was clear he had just woken up as he ran a hand through his hair again, making his way beside Lance and Kosmo.

“Maybe. He never does that though, not even when Allura and Adam play with the doorbell to wake everyone up,” Katie huffed, hands on her hips.

“I’ll take him back upstairs.” Letting out a long yawn, Keith tapped Kosmo’s head lightly, causing him to perk up from Lance’s side. “C’mon, upstairs! Bedtime!” Keith instantly perked up, pointing toward the stairs.

Pulling away from Lance, Kosmo jumped at Keith’s knees, circling him once before booking it toward the staircase. With a tired groan, Keith followed after the hyperactive puppy, hands behind his head.

When Keith got up to the second step of the stairs, he heard the front door open again. “Sorry about that, Nyma. We think the doorbell ringing spooked the dog.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you still had a _ dog _ in this household.”

Keith paused. His hand was on the railing, one foot on the third step, the other on the second. The way she said “dog” made him backtrack, disgust spreading across his face. Whoever this girl was, he already disliked her. The way she spoke sounded like a stuck up fifteen year old.

“Still had...?” Katie’s sentence trailed off as the sound of high heels clicked into the household.

There was silence for a moment. Tension filled silence that had Keith turning over his shoulder to stare at the hallway despite the fact he couldn’t see them.

“Nyma?” Lance’s surprised voice broke the silence. He sounded strained. Awkward. A way he would usually never sound.

“Ah, what a _ pleasure _ to see you here, Lance. I almost forgot you worked on the _ Voltron _ channel!”

There was laughter. Forced laughter. From Lance. Something Keith had not once heard in his seven months of living with him. It was rigid, solid, and just _ awkward _. “Yeah, I still work on the channel.”

“I thought by now they would have replaced you!” The woman laughed, high pitched and fony. It left Keith cringing in on himself, arms tucking into his sides. “Let me guess by your current attire, you’re single and lonely? No job? You look... like a mess actually!”

Keith’s jaw immediately clenched.

Again, Lance forced a laugh. “Pidge, mind if we have a word...?”

“Uhm... yeah, of course. Nyma, our living room is right down that hallway. Do you mind just-”

“I know where it is,” the woman snapped. “I’ll wait for you. Hurry, I’m on a tight schedule.”

Keith watched with hard eyes as a woman came into view. She was about seven inches shorter than him, wearing five-inch pink heels. She was wearing a hot pink, tight pencil skirt that landed several inches above her knees and a tight white crop top that showed _ way _ too much bronzed skin. Her hair was bleached blonde, borderlining white. It was put up into dreads, bunched at the ends.

Keith watched almost mortified as the woman walked out of his view.

It took no more than a second before Lance came barreling in front of the stairs, hand wrapped around Katie’s wrist tightly.

Lanced stared up at Keith for a second, making eye contact. He looked terrified, eyes blown, jaw clenched. Instantly, his eyes were off Keith, now on Katie.

“Pidge! What is she doing here?” Lance whisper-screamed at her. His arms were shaking.

“I-... How do you two even know each other?” Katie shot back, grabbing her arm from Lance’s grip and rubbing her wrist.

“She’s the ex we always talk about! The one I broke up with last year before you moved in! The one who I told you cheated on me and used me for money? You know, the one who’s extremely manipulative?”

Katie’s jaw dropped instantly. “Oh, shit!”

“Yeah, oh shit is right, Pidge! Now fix this! Get that _ heathen _ out of this household instantly.”

Katie floundered, hands twitching in front of her, mouth opening and closing several times. “Lance... If I had known, I wouldn’t have accepted her for a collab... She has five million followers on all of her platforms and the last time someone backed out of a collab with her, she bashed them so hard they ended up leaving the internet for good...”

Turning around fully to face the two, Keith found himself floored.

Katie looked downright devastated and sad, while Lance looked like he was about to start sobbing right then and there.

“How long is the collab going to take and what is it about?”

“A month? She said she’d come three to four times a week. It was for a documentary series about living in LA as content creators...”

“I can’t be here,” Lance insisted, raising his hands. “She won’t leave me alone if she’s here. She’s insane, I would know. She already started making assumptions about me being single! We got into a relationship right after she got out of one- which, should have been a red flag on my end, but when she found out he was single, she chewed him out on her twitter for two months! Two whole months, Pidge!”

“Oh my God,” Katie gasped. She reached out to Lance, grabbing his shoulders tightly. “I’m so, so sorry... Maybe we can think of a plan? Tell her you’re in a relationship, and just say whoever you’re with isn’t in town for the next few weeks?”

“She’d immediately know we were lying then,” Lance tsked, backing away from Katie’s touch. “What am I supposed to do!”

“Get someone in the house to pretend you’re in a relationship until the collab is completed,” Keith instantly supplied. With wide eyes, Lance looked up at Keith.

“Oh my gosh,” Lance paused, mouth forming into a smile. “That’s brilliant, Keith!”

“The only issue is, who? Not Coran, he’s too old. Obviously not Shiro or Adam, they’re in a relationship and it’s all over our channel. Not Allura either, Lotor and her have done the couples tag videos... Hunk?”

Lance’s shoulders hiked up. “She knows Hunk and I have been best friends since we were five, and she’s met his girlfriend,” he instantly shut down.

“So... that leaves me and Keith.”

Lance stared at her for a second, jaw clenched.

“Definitely not you.”

Katie raised her hands, eyebrows drawing down. “Woah, hey there, rude!”

“No- I mean! You’re the one doing a collab with her! If I was “dating” you, Nyma would expect me to spend time with you more! There is no way I want to do that, seeing as you’ll be with Nyma!”

Hands dropping, Katie simply said _ “Oh.” _

She paused, turning her head over her shoulder. “That leaves Keith.”

Instantly, Keith felt himself go rigid, jaw clenching even more, eyes widening.

Lance snapped his attention back onto Keith. “My buddy, pal, my man,” he started, moving closer to the staircase. “Would you do me the biggest favor in the entire world and pretend to be my boyfriend for the next few weeks?”

Swallowing hard, Keith’s grip on the staircase railing tightened. His heart was pounding. “Absolutely not.”

“Oh, c’mon!” Lance whined, talking louder than he was before. “It was your idea, and you’re the only one in this house who doesn’t already know her, besides Pidge!”

Raising a finger, Keith leaned closer down the stairs. “Hell. No.”

Lance slapped a hand over his forehead. “Dude, I’ll do anything for you if you’ll just do me this one favor! Literally, name it and I’ll do it!”

Keith stared at Lance, eyes narrowed, lips pressed together tightly. If anything, he was flustered more than anything. The thought of him dating Lance McClain? It set his body on fire.

Before he knew it, he was running the pros and cons through his head.

Cons? He’d have to deal with whatever Lance said to him, like nicknames. Would he be able to deal with it without accidentally slipping up the fact he liked him, for real? Probably not. Would that mean he’d also have to hug Lance? Kiss him? How far would they go with having to convince Nyma they were dating?

He shuddered.

Pros? He could say he was dating Lance, even if it wasn’t one-hundred percent real. Maybe this could help him get everything out of his system? Compliments? Subtle touches?

_ Maybe help him get over Lance? _

Clearing his throat, Keith released the staircase railing. “The Whaley House,” he started, a mischievous glint in his eye. “If I agree to do this, you have to agree you’ll spend a night in the Whaley House with me once this is finished.”

Momentarily, the other looked confused. “The what house?”

“Whaley House, the most haunted house in the United States in the most haunted town. The entire town is built over graves,” Katie supplied him, shuddering as she did.

“Oh hell no!” he screamed in protest, crossing his arms in an X in front of him. “You know well enough I don’t mess with any of that demon shit!”

“Then I won’t pretend to be your boyfriend. Good luck.” Turning around and walking up a few stairs, Keith was grabbed by the arm.

“Wait- wait,” Lance stopped him. “I’ll do it, alright? I don’t feel like being smashed online and getting into a “scandal”. I’m good, I’d rather deal with the ghosts than the fourteen year old girls online.”

A snicker escaped Katie from below them. _ “You can say that again.” _

“Okay then,” Keith breathed out, shaking his arm out of Lance’s grip. “Deal.” He turned, shoving his left hand toward Lance. With gritted teeth, Lance grabbed his hand roughly, shaking their hands over-dramatically.

“Deal.”

“Katie! Can we get this show on the road?” jeered Nyma from the living room.

Puffing her cheeks up, then blowing our harshly, Katie gritted her teeth as she forced a smile. “Be right there!”

“Can you tell _ Lance _ to come over here too? I want to talk to him!”

Turning to look up at him, Katie jutted her bottom lip out. “Just for a few minutes?”

Lance groaned, shoulders shaking. “Fine, five minutes tops, and Keith has to come.” Wrapping his arm around Keith’s, he forcefully tugged him down the stairs with him. Keith gasped in response, tripping over his own feet before landing loudly back on the first floor.

“Okay, whatever makes you comfortable,” Katie sang as she tucked her shoulders back and started over to the living room.

Stealing a once-over at Lance, Keith pressed his lips together tightly. Lance was wearing black joggers and a loose-fitting white tank top. He looked comfortable. Swallowing shallowly, Keith jerked his arm away from Lance with squinted eyes, eyebrows drawn down tightly.

The pair followed after Katie into the living room. Nyma was sitting on the main couch in the middle. At Katie’s entrance, she tapped the empty couch beside her. Hesitantly Katie walked around the center coffee table and sat down beside her, fists clenched on her knees.

When Keith and Lance made it into the room, Nyma squinted at Keith harshly before patting the other side of her. “Come, sit Lance! Let’s catch up before Katie and I start planning our stuff. It’s been a year!”

_ “I wish it was longer,” _ Lance whispered close to Keith’s ear before plastering a forced smile on his face. Keith followed behind Lance, eyes set on Nyma hard and cold as he sat on the other side of Lance.

“Who’s this?” Nyma tilted her head and motioned to Keith. She was frowning.

“That’s Keith,” Katie supplied.

“Uh, I was asking _ Lance _,” Nyma snapped, turning to glare at Katie. She clenched her jaw, turning away from Nyma’s evil glare.

When the conniving evil _ bitch _ turned back to look at the pair, she was flashing a toothy grin. Her teeth were sharp. It was obvious she got them filed. It wasn’t an uncommon thing to see around in show business people, but still, Keith found himself cringing.

“Like Katie said, his name’s Keith. He’s Shiro’s little brother. He works for the Voltron channel too,” explained Lance. Hesitantly he turned, eyes meeting with him. Now that his face was out of Nyma’s view, Lance rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out.

Keeping a straight face Keith nodded. He watched carefully as Lance’s eyes darted to his hands before looking back up at him, obviously asking permission for something. Carefully he nodded again, just slightly.

Lance reached out instantly, taking both of his hands in his own. They were warm Keith noted, eyes snapping down to their now intertwined hands. Warm golden skin against porcelain. What a contrast, Keith thought.

He liked the sight of it.

“He’s also my boyfriend,” Lance ended up tacking on, his voice softer than before. It sent Keith’s stomach erupting with butterflies. He bit down on his cheeks as a nervous habit, looking up from their hands only to see Nyma staring directly at him with disgust. 

A simple _ “oh?” _ was all that came from her. She coughed uneasily, shifting in her seat.

“Surprising,” she teased evilly. “Thought you’d still be hung up over _ me _.”

Keith’s eyebrows lowered, expression morphing into something a little darker.

_ Evil bitch. Evil bitch. Satan's spawn kind of evil bitch... _

“Yeah, you were very wrong there,” Katie snorted, erupting into bubbly laughter. “Now if you’ll excuse those two, they have editing to do and we should be getting to work.”

For a split second, Nyma’s eyes were on his. Keith held her glare just as harshly, jaw clenched. He knew well enough his bitch glare was intense. He was told that by many people, like his old foster parents, his childhood teachers, and even his own brother.

Nyma was the first one to look away. Keith noted the way her shoulders shook as she put her attention fully on Katie. “Right, right. I’ll be seeing much more of you two this month,” she reminded them. 

He hated the sound of that. He already hated Nyma for several accounts.

One for being the fact she’s satan’s obvious evil spawn. The second for being she obviously broke Lance’s heart and made him extremely uncomfortable. Looking back on it Keith could remember snippets of conversations he and Lance had about his ex-girlfriend and how she used him, which really made him uneasy about dating again. He never got the full story though. Just by seeing this woman in the flesh and hearing how she spoke, he could only guess what happened between the two.

It was unsettling to Keith that Lance found this woman attractive. She must have been different before. There was no way Lance fell for her the way she was acting now. He knew Lance’s standards were better than that.

Before he could react, Keith was being pulled off the couch by his hands. “Yeah, great! Have fun you two, call us if needed!” Lance called out loudly, grabbing at Keith’s shoulders and forcing him to turn around. An arm was being slipped around his waist, a warm hand squeezing at his side.

He tensed at the contact, shoulders squaring as he was ushered out of the living room and back into the hallway. By the time the two got back to the staircase, the warmth on his back was gone and Lance’s figure was rushing in front of him. A hurried, “Sorry about that,” spilling from him as he ran out of site.

Stunned, Keith stayed frozen at the bottom of the stairs. He stared at them blankly, running his tongue across his cheeks. The tang of metallic warmth was what he was greeted with. He shuddered, snapping out of his trance and reaching for the stair-railing.

_ Well, that was odd. _

After the whole ordeal was done with, Keith was subjected to laying in his bed once again with Kosmo tucked under his arm. Lance was rather quiet behind the keyboard of his computer for the following three hours until a sudden, “I’ll see you tomorrow at nine!” echoed from downstairs.

Perking his head up and looking over at Lance, he noticed how he paused, head turned in interest at the door. He stared at the back of Lance’s head until he heard the front door shut and Lance eased up again, exhaling sharply before returning his full attention on the computer.

* * *

The following morning Keith was awoken by soft shaking and murmurs. He found himself groaning in response, arching his back slightly as he stretched out.

“Keeeeiitthhh,” Lance’s voice drawled out beside him.

Jaw instantly tightening, his eyes snapped open. Hovering above his face were two familiar sapphire blue eyes blinking down at him owlishly. A raspy gasp escaped him as he jumped, going to sit up, but failing as two strong hands pushed against his chest and pushed him back against the mattress.

“Calm down, my lord,” sputtered Lance.

Keith stared up at him with wide eyes. He was breathing faster than normal, that he could tell easily. Lance was kneeling on his mattress over him in a suggestive manner which left Keith curling his hands around his bedsheets.

“Nyma is here.” Golden hands motioned to the half-open bedroom door. “I heard her and Pidge talking about coming upstairs to start filming. Mind if I come and lay with you if you know what I mean?” He raised an eyebrow before wiggling both of them, shooting Keith a grin that briefly reminded him of the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland.

Groaning, Keith let his eyes shut again. “It’s too early in the morning for this,” he confessed, voice uneven and grainy.

“That wasn’t a no?”

“That wasn’t a yes either.”

A firm hand pushed at his chest again, playfully this time. “Awe, c’mon Keithers. Who in their right mind would pass up the opportunity to have a hot guy in their bed?”

Eyes snapping open, Keith glared at him through his disheveled bangs. “Anyone,” he deadpanned in response. “Besides, there was already a hot guy in this bed before you came in.”

Lance gasped, raising a hand to his chest in mock shock. “How rude. Though, I can’t deny that is one hundred percent true.”

Eyes squinted, Keith opened his mouth in question before being cut off by a _ very _ obnoxious voice.

“Your room is on the second floor you said?” _ Nyma’s _ voice trailed from the hallway where the staircase was. “Oh! Isn’t Lance’s room up here? Maybe we should drop in and see how he’s doing!”

“He’s probably sleeping... We really shouldn’t bother him,” Katie interjected.

She was clearly lying. Lance was an early morning bird. It gave Keith some ease though to see Katie was trying to best to keep the two away from each other without causing a scene.

Nyma tsked loudly and the familiar sound of high heels clicking against hardwood followed. “He rarely ever slept past eight when I knew him. Let’s go check anyway.”

Jaw now clenched, Keith surged up, grabbing Lance by the hips and pulling him down. Their hips met with force, causing Keith to shudder with a light gasp when Lance’s head hit his chest.

A stuttered breath escaped Lance as he turned his head, their eyes meeting. “What- What are-” he stuttered in a whisper, only to be cut off.

“Just, shut up. Pretend you’re sleeping,” Keith silenced him, hands shaking as he wrapped one around Lance’s waist, the other moving up to cradle his head against his chest.

It was an awkward position he’d admit. A very intimate one at that. He was also eighty percent sure that Lance could hear his heart slamming against his rips at this very moment because that was definitely happening.

Taking one last look at Lance before shutting his eyes, he noticed Lance was looking out the window, cheeks flushed as he curled his hands against Keith’s chest. He continued staring quietly until Lance’s eyes fluttered closed, his long eyelashes showing more prominently than ever.

Closing his eyes too, Keith shifted his fingers through Lance’s hair. He felt Lance’s body ease against his, sending shivers buzzing through his spine.

Across the hallway, he heard a door slam open with force. Lance flinched at the sudden bang, hands curling tighter against Keith’s chest.

“Wait, Nyma-!”

“Lance?”

Their voices were muffled after that. He could hear bits and pieces of their conversation but they were too far for him to make out exactly what they were saying. Assuming they were talking about Lance, and the possibility he was probably in someone else’s room, Nyma’s voice trailed back into the hallway.

“Whose room is that?”

“Oh. That’s Keith’s,” he heard Katie respond. He heard the door shut, but, on the far end of the hallway another door opened with a creak.

“What in the world was that?” Allura’s voice chimed in. She sounded tired, her British accent showing more than it usually would. Her words were even a bit slurred. 

“Sorry, Allura!” Katie was quick to apologize.

“Ah, forgot, others were probably asleep in this house. A shame. Sorry, _ Allora _.”

It was silent for a second, tension-filled. “Why are you here, Nyma?”

“Katie and I are working on a youtube series. She invited me over.”

“Oh... Really now?” It was hard to miss the agitation and disappointment in her voice. “Does Lance know?”

“Of course!”

“I wish I didn’t though,” Lance whispered quietly into Keith’s neck, the warmth of his breath tickling him in surprise. A muffled giggle escaped Keith, something that would rarely happen, but he was tired, was just tickled, and had a very attractive person on top of him right now. His spirits were high.

“Did you just... giggle?” Lance lifted his head slightly. “You’re ticklish... Keith Kogane is ticklish... He has a weakness after all!”

Softly, Keith pushed his head back down and hushed him. That didn’t stop Lance from smiling and pressing closer to his neck, warmth brushing against his cheek and neck with every breath Lance took.

He did his best not to squirm, opening an eye slightly to see Nyma and Allura standing close in the hallway. Allura was wearing her yoga pants and a sweatshirt, so she must’ve just woken up. Probably because of Nyma.

“Anyway,” Nyma brushed off. “Speaking of sleeping people, I wonder if Keith is asleep!”

Footsteps drew closer to the door. Keith clammed his eyes shut instantly, the hand he had carding through Lance’s hair going limp. He shifted the arm he had around his waist, tightening his grip around him. Subtly, Keith shifted his feet, crossing them over the back of Lance’s legs, basically trapping him.

“Oh my- No! No, no, no. Nyma, _ please _ don’t bother Keith. He _ hates _ it when people bother him when he’s sleeping,” Allura’s frantic voice broke the waiting tension.

“That’s... true,” Katie added. “One time I went to wake him up so we could leave early to film and he head-butted me so hard I thought I was going to pass out.”

“Then why is his door open?” Nyma laughed, footsteps continuing.

“I’m... actually not sure. He never leaves it open,” Allura commented.

Before more was said, Keith _ felt _ the sudden burst of wind sweep over him as his bedroom door flew open. 

“Hey, Keith-!” Nyma’s voice cut itself off.

_ Heathen- Heathen alert, in my room. I’m going to have to sage the entire room. Burn the floor her high heels touched. _

A trio of _ “oh” _s echoed into the room as Nyma, hopefully, scuffed out of the room, faking gagging sounds.

“Well, that’s where Lance is,” Katie snorted.

“But why-”

“Allura!” Katie snapped, cutting her off. “How about you go get Hunk and we can talk about some shooting ideas with Nyma! Yeah? Sounds great, right? Let’s leave these two alone!”

The door snapped shut with a bang.

Keith waited several seconds before opening his eyes, seeing the door finally shut. Sighing, he dropped his hand from Lance’s surprisingly soft hair.

“I think we may have forgotten to tell the rest of the team about the whole _ fake relationship until Nyma is out of our lives for good _ thing,” Keith pointed out with ease, ignoring the fact that his heart was hammering at his chest. Yeah, there was absolutely no way Lance couldn’t feel that.

“Whoopsy-daisy.”

Neither of the two made an effort to detach from each other, which sent Keith’s mind spiraling. He felt very uneasy at this very moment. He wasn’t accustomed to so much _ physical contact _ for so long.

“Uhm, so...” Keith trailed, looking down at Lance who was blinking owlishly at the window now.

“Mind if I just stay here until Nyma disappears?” Lifting his head from Keith’s chest, he rolled over to lay beside him, folding his arms behind his head. For a moment, just a slither of a moment, Keith missed the warmth on his body.

“Oh, uh, sure? But I want to go back to bed,” he responded, scooting over to the side of the bed to give Lance more room.

“Don’t mind me, I won’t bug you.”

Keith watched as Lance crossed his ankles, leaning his head back and closing his eyes like it wasn’t a big deal.

“Alright...” He sounded unsure. He _ was _ unsure. It felt like he was treading into foreign grounds with Lance laying in bed beside him.

Rolling onto his side with his back to Lance, a shuddering breath escaped Keith.

He knew what he had to do.

_ Burn sage in the room to rid it of the evil heathen’s entities. _

_ Fuck Nyma. _

* * *

Making his way down to the living room later that week, Keith found the couch filled with the housemates. Adam, Allura, Hunk, and Coran were squished together tightly with two bags of popcorn, all in their lounge clothes, looking more disheveled than ever.

“What’s wrong with you all?” Keith called out as he walked into the kitchen instead. Katie was sitting at the bar with her laptop, head on the counter asleep. Typical.

“I miss Takashi!” Adam shouted in response.

“Lotor has a meeting today!” Allura added.

“Romelle and Shay are busy shopping. Not my thing!” Hunk chimed in.

“I’m just here for the movie and popcorn!” Coran added enthusiastically.

“So basically you all have relationship issues, besides Coran. Why am I not surprised?” Keith commented as he pulled a Hi-C from the fridge. Ripping the straw off the side of the box, he angrily tore the paper off and stuck the straw into the box with force.

He was tired. He was uncomfortable. He wanted to run off the roof into the pool and float there for the rest of eternity.

He had been woken up almost every other day the past week with Lance jumping into his bed as Nyma roared up the stairs. And every morning, she never failed to fling the door open only to find the two “cuddling.” Keith wanted to sleep in for once. Though the past four times Nyma had come over, Lance and him and just stayed in his room for a few hours and they were good. They didn’t have to talk to her or do much more than pretend to be cuddling for a few minutes long enough to convince her they were sleeping.

He was uncomfortable too because of the cuddling. It wasn’t that he didn’t like it. He liked it a little _ too _ much.

Yeah, he regretted this and it hasn’t even been a full week yet.

“Well excuse us for not having a perfect _ fake _ relationship!” Adam boomed, the sound of something clattering on the hardwood floor following.

Beside him, Katie jolted up, hands balling into fists in front of her. Stifling a laugh, Keith reached out and patted her shoulder. “Simmer down, go back to sleep,” he laughed as he made his way into the living room.

A pile of popcorn laid askew across the floor, the popcorn bowl several feet away from the wide eyed roommates on the couch.

“He did it,” Allura insinuated instantly, jabbing a finger into Adam’s side. The man flinched, pressing against Hunk with his nose scrunched.

“Don’t rat me out, you’re supposed to be on my side!” he hissed at her. The two intensely stared each other down before they leaned over the couch at the same time, grabbing handfuls of the popcorn.

Keith rolled his eyes, taking a long sip from his fruit punch before crushing the box in his hand. “It’s not a perfect fake relationship,” he pointed out, raising a finger at Adam’s hunched figure. “It’s a terribly forced fake relationship that is awkward as hell and only was mustered to please the demon- sorry, I mean Nyma.”

A snort erupted from Coran. “Oh lad, you have no idea. Some of us have dealt with her for two years. She’s more than a demon. She’s Satan himself,” Coran quickly corrected. “Boy does she love starting argy-bargees over the silliest of things. She thinks she’s one real corker, having to be the gaffer of everyone. She’s a nob who’s lost her marbles!”

Keith opened his mouth, eyebrows drawing down before snapping his mouth again. “Sure!” Was all he said as he turned back into the kitchen. 

British slang was something else.

Turning back over to the counter, Keith realized Katie was standing now, grabbing her laptop and tucking it under her arm. “I need to talk to you and Lance, while I’m still awake enough to,” she slurred, pushing the barstool she was sitting in closer to the bar.

“About what?” Keith asked, tossing his fruit-punch box into the trash.

“Nyma, videos, acting. Let’s go.”

Keith’s face screwed with perplexion as the small girl bounced out of the kitchen on her heels, making a break for the hallway. Without question he followed after her.

The two ended up upstairs, standing in Lance’s doorway. The lanky boy was laying faceforward on his bed, his phone held closely in front of him.

“Excuse me, coming through,” Katie nudged Keith’s side, pushing into the room. Lance’s head perked up at the voice, a wide smile forming on his face as Katie jumped onto the end of his bed, slamming her laptop onto her lap.

Choosing to lean against the doorframe with his arms crossed against his chest, he waited as Katie opened her laptop.

“Okay, we have to chat real quick.” She yawne, taking the back of her hand to cover her mouth. “‘Scuse me.”

She tapped on the keyboard for a few seconds. “Okay, so, Nyma forced me to make some makeup videos with her already. It’s my turn to force her into doing something. I want to take her to the haunted cemetery down the street and scare the shit out of her, but hell am I going alone. Adam said no, Allura declined peacefully, and I know Hunk and Coran can’t handle that cemetery, so my only option is you two.”

Great, Keith thought. She wanted to take the heathen evil bitch to a haunted cemetery. Maybe her presence alone would scare off the other demons living among there. He knew her presence scared him enough to send him running.

A breathy laugh came from Lance. “Think we can try and scare her a bit?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Katie assured. “Would you two be okay with tagging along and acting all couple-y?”

“I’d be fine with it,” Lance answered without hesitation, pausing to look over his shoulder. “How about you, Keith?”

At being addressed, Keith pushed off the doorframe. “Yeah, sure,” he agreed.

He really did not want to do it though.

Not that he had a problem pretending to be couple-y with Lance.

Because that.

That was the problem.

“Okay, sweet.” Snapping her laptop closed, Katie tucked her laptop under her arm. “I’m going to try and sleep, for once. Make sure you guys are ready tomorrow at six. Prepare for an overnight.” With that, she pushed off Lance’s dark blue sheets and scurried past Keith, another yawn escaping her.

“One day, she’s going to crash and burn,” Lance commented once she was out of earshot. Nodding in agreement, Keith looked over to the smiley latino. 

“Uh, see you tomorrow,” he hesitated to say. The two made eye contact for several seconds before Keith was turning on his heel, rounding the doorway faster than he’d run from Nyma.

He could feel one word being plastered onto the front of his skull.

_ Awkward. _

* * *

“Are you going to survive tonight?” Shiro’s taunting voice came from the speakers of his phone. Scowling at the device, Keith shook his head. Kosmo, who sat beside him, mimicked his gesture, shaking his head wildly enough to send his ears flopping from one side of his head to the other.

Keith was sure to suppress his smile and laughter as he stared at the glitching facetime screen.

“No, I’m not,” he clarified with words. “Nyma is like, satan herself. I dislike her. A lot.”

“You dislike a lot of people, Keith,” his brother pointedly remarked. At that, a loud and obnoxious sigh was all that came from Keith.

“But she’s different. She’s like, actually rude.”

“I know, I met her, I dealt with her for two years. Trust me, I can agree she is satan.”

“Thank you,” Keith dramatically sighed. “I don’t know what Lance saw in her? She’s not nice, at all, that’s for sure. She’s blatantly rude. She’s not even that pretty?”

“Hey, you’re gay and socially inept, I don’t think you think any girl is pretty.”

Giving a deadpanned glare at his phone, he gave a thumbs up. “Accurate.”

Despite the glitchiness of their call, he saw how Shiro’s eyebrows raised slightly and how his lips curled devilishly. “Do you have all of your stuff packed and ready?”

Nodding, Keith reached over his bed, grabbing the large black bag that was sitting at the edge. He then motioned at the oversized dark blue hoodie he was wearing. “All set. I’m just waiting on Lance to tell me when he’s ready to head out.”

Shiro nodded. “Good, good.”

“Yeah...” It was silent for a second. “So, how’s Luxor?” Keith opted to question.

“Hot, very hot. Very sandy. There are a lot of horses too,” Shiro responded hurriedly. 

“Did you get good clips?”

“Um, of course? Have you not met me?”

At that, there was a soft knock on his door. “Keith, ready to go my man?” Lance’s soft voice greeted him.

“Yeah, gimme a second!” he responded, grabbing his back and hoisting it over his shoulders.

“Looks like I’ll call you later?” Shiro questioned.

“Yeah, sounds good.”

“Okay,” Shiro started. “Don’t kill Nyma, please. Mom and dad don’t need to hear about another potential death case.”

Keith’s door opened a crack. “Excuse me? Another potential death case?” Lance poked his head in, eyes wide.

“Oop, looks like that’s my queue to leave!” Shiro barked. “Bye Keith, Lance! Be safe, have fun! Make sure to get all kissy kissy and hand holdy!”

Before Keith could protest the screen flash black and he found himself looking at his own reflection.

“Don’t mind him, he jokes,” Keith brushed off as he pocketed his phone, grabbed the door and opening it wider. Lance was leaned against the wall beside the door, arms crossed as well as ankles. He was wearing dark jeans and a black hoodie, a blue bag hanging from one shoulder.

“I would know, I’ve lived with him for almost three years,” Lance reminded him as the pair made their way down the stairs.

“Right...” Keith drawled out as they made it to the last steps. Standing in the hallway was Katie, who had a large backpack hanging over her shoulders and two cameras in her hand. Her long hair was put back into two boxer braids and she was wearing an oversized coat with leggings. Beside her, Nyma was standing with her hip popped to the side, hands on her hips. She had a small bag hanging from one shoulder, a winter jacket and shorts on.

Lovely.

“Nice of you two to finally join us,” Nyma was quick to comment. Keith didn’t fail to notice how she did a once over of both of them. “What kept you two so long? Making out or something?”

From his side, Lance forced a laugh. “Totally.”

As the four made their way out to Keith’s truck, they decided Katie would drive and they’d put their equipment in the passenger's seat. This left the three of them, Lance, Keith, and Nyma, squished together in the back.

Purposely, Keith wedged himself in the middle of the two, despite how much he disliked Nyma. He wasn’t going to let Lance suffer a fifteen minute ride sitting next to the ex that hurt him so much. 

He was half sitting in Lance’s seat, leaning against him to avoid any contact with the she-devil. Lance obviously noticed this because not even two minutes into the drive, Lance was putting his arm around Keith’s shoulders, pulling him closer.

The action sent butterflies soaring through Keith’s stomach and warmth to flush his cheeks and collar bone.

When they made it to their stop, they stayed in the truck for a while, letting Katie film the intro while they stayed quiet in the back. Keith was sure that the camera could see how he was leaning against Lance’s chest, Lance’s arm around him tightly. If Katie didn’t bother to crop it, he knew there would be a lot of questions in the comment section about it.

“Okay, we’re good,” Katie signaled them.

Without warning, the warm arm that once held him close was retreated. Keith tried to keep himself from looking distraught as Lance opened the door, unbuckling quickly and jumping out of the truck. Keith followed after him quickly and once he landed, Lance’s arms were around his shoulders.

“You good?” he whispered, eyebrows drawn down just the lightest.

Licking his bottom lip, a nervous habit he did before he lied, he nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine,” he whispered back. Lance let go of his shoulders, letting him shut the backseat door.

For the most part, Keith and Lance kept their distance behind Katie and Nyma as they walked through the cemetery. They were just there for backup and extra people, of course, so they kept to themselves as Nyma complained about it being cold and scary and Katie explaining ghosts stories.

They were sure to walk close together. They hadn’t dared to hold hands.

Every once in awhile Keith would catch Nyma turning around and staring at them before putting her attention back on Katie. It was strange and left an uneasy feeling in his gut.

“See this tree,” Katie paused them, pulling her camera out and pointing it toward the tree beside them. Nyma looked up at it with disgust.

“What about it?” she questioned, eyebrows quirked up.

“Apparently, ten or so years ago, a girl hung herself from it. They say her soul lingers in the cemetery, warding off unwanted visitors from two to three. The last time I came here it was with Shiro and Keith, it got spooky real fast.”

Nyma visibly curled in on herself, stepping back from the tree. “Oh, jeez.”

Beside Keith, he was aware of Lance suddenly leaning in closer to him. Their shoulders brushed and Keith could feel Lance’s chin on his shoulder.

“Is that true?” he whispered into his ear, warm breath hitting against his cold skin. He shivered at the contact.

“Yeah, it is. Though, I wasn’t scared about the weird stuff that happened,” Keith responded, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets. Lance hummed against his neck, pulling away slightly.

“If a ghost comes around and tries to steal my soul, will you save me?”

Turning to glare at him, he noted how Lance had his head tilted slightly to the side, his bottom lip jutted out slightly.

“Sure, doofus.”

The night continued on the same. Katie trying to spook Nyma senseless as they continued through the large cemetery. Lance and Keith were occasionally bumping shoulders as they walked together, but neither of them made an effort to take a step away from the other. Besides, Nyma was still persistent in turning around every so often.

“Let’s stop here for a little bit,” Katie pointed to an empty grass lot with her flashlight. The group followed after her, sitting criss cross on the damp grass. When Katie pulled her phone to check the time, it was barely twelve in the morning.

“We have time to burn,” she commented, pocketing her phone and placing her flashlight in the middle of their makeshift circle.

Pulling his backpack from his sore shoulders, Keith hissed slightly, letting the backdrop behind him. Instantly he felt feather light touched on his left shoulder. “You okay?” Lance whispered beside him.

“I’m fine,” he replied, rubbing his right shoulder. “Just sore from the bag. I was carrying all the extra flashlights and batteries,” he explained with ease, eyes locked with the grass.

“Awe, does someone need a massage?”

Without hesitation, Katie pointed a finger gun at Lance and clicked her tongue. “Let’s not say we did!”

Lance deflated. “How rude.”

“Not rude, just would not like to be exposed to your weird PDA.”

“Not PDA,” Keith groaned. 

“Close enough,” Katie huffed.

They let silence hang in the air for a while after that. Nyma seemed busy fixing her stick on nails. Katie was playing with a weird contraption from the side of her bag. Keith was just sitting and simply enjoying the silence and rest, leaning his back against his backpack.

Lance’s hand was holding his, rubbing circles into each digit of each finger. It was an odd sensation, but somehow soothing and relaxing. Keith thanked the heavens it was dark and the obvious heat he was feeling radiating from his cheeks was concealed.

With seemingly belittled interest, Keith watched with care at Lance’s expression. His blue eyes were locked with his pale hands, tongue sticking out slightly between his plump lips.

A hesitant smile grew on Keith’s face. He liked the mild concentration running across the other’s face. It was, dare he say, cute.

“How did you two meet anyway?” Nyma suddenly broke the silence.

Tearing his eyes away from Lance’s face, he glared at the girl across from him. Her hands were loosely folded against her ankles, her eyes trained on their hands.

“Remember, he’s Shiro’s little brother,” Lance responded without missing a beat. He didn’t raise his head to address her, his eyes still locked on Keith’s hands. “Eight or so months ago Keith flew down to visit Shiro and check out the Voltron house. I went with Shiro to the airport, seeing as Shiro had talked my ear off basically about his amazingly cool little brother. I figured for myself I’d go with him and meet him, judge for myself if he was cool,” he started off cooly, voice steady. Keith envied him a little for it, coming up with this off the top of his head. Though, the fact that they first met at the airport was very true.

“Shiro was not wrong at all,” he finished, finally raising his head. His warm hands stayed around Keith’s loosely. They met eyes for a moment. There was a soft toothy smile shining off Lance’s face. A smile that was way too soft for Keith to handle at this moment, especially seeing as they were _ kind of _ holding hands.

“Disgustingly cute,” Nyma commented, looking back down to her nails with a straight face.

“Indeed,” Katie agreed. “You should have seen how they acted when Keith finally arrived at the house. Lance was all flushed and wouldn’t stop talking about his hair and eyes. It was borderline rom-com stuff.”

Between him, Keith could see from his peripheral vision Lance snap his head toward Katie with a hard expression. Katie shared the same expression. It was intense, eyes on one another. It was like they were communicating telepathically, and in all honesty, it was creeping Keith out.

“Anyway!” Lance drawled out, straightening his posture and dropping Keith’s hand.

Stuffing his hands in his hoodie, Keith stared down at his shoes in mild perplexion.

“What are we going to do out here anyway? Nothing weird has happened.”

“Yet,” Keith tacked onto whatever Nyma was saying, mildly disinterested in all honesty. He prayed a bat would come flying out of a tree and attack her.

“I brought some recorders with me, so we can see if we can communicate with any spirits.”

“You can leave me out of that,” Lance declared, slumping against Keith. He put his chin on Keith’s shoulder, hand meeting the grass behind him.

Stiffening slightly, Keith found himself holding his breath.

“Awe, is someone scared of ghosts?” Nyma teased, raising a dangerously thin eyebrow. “Why doesn’t that even surprise me? You’ve always been the scaredy type-”

“Hey,” Keith cut her off, eyes narrow. As if on instinct he sat up a bit taller, wrapping an arm around Lance’s lower back. “Just because he doesn’t want to get involved in it doesn’t mean he’s scared or any less brave. Please leave him alone.”

He tried his best to sound as nice as he could, but he was aware he was clenching his jaw and the indecisive twitch of his nose.

No one said a word for a while after that, thankfully.

Twenty or so minutes later Katie urged them to get up again so they could go deeper into the cemetery before three am.

Keith got up with ease, grabbing his bag and slinging it over one of his shoulders. Pain shot through it instantly and he regretted the sudden movement with a blank expression.

“I’m comfortable...” Lance groaned from the ground, curled against his bag.

“C’mon, you don’t want to fall asleep here, trust me,” Keith insisted, crouching down beside the other. He grabbed Lance’s arms, warmth radiating off his sweatshirt. Pulling at his arms, Lance groaned, eyes fluttering open to give him a despair filled look.

“Keith, buddy, my man, why must you do this to me?”

“Well I mean, if you’d like to be possessed or have ghosts follow you for the rest of your life, be my guest and sleep here.”

With that said Lance was pulling himself to stand, arms wrapped around Keith’s. For the other, it didn’t go unnoticed how Keith hissed slightly at the movement.

Nyma and Katie were already back on the trail, cameras on and talking lowly about going deeper in to see what they could find.

“Hey, do you want me to take your bag for a bit and give your shoulders a rest?” Lance offered once he grabbed his much smaller bag and slung it over one of his shoulders.

Keith shook his head. “It’s fine,” he insisted. “I’m fine. Besides, your shoulders would start to hurt too.”

“Um excuse me,” Lance scoffed, splaying a hand over his own chest. “Have you met me? I have the shoulders of a greek god!”

With an unimpressed look, Keith slung his bag off and dropped it on the grass in front of him. “You’re an odd one, McClain. You know that?”

With a victorious smile, Lance bent down and grabbed the bag with satisfaction. “I take pride in being the odd one out, Kogane. I stick out in a crowd. My antics will never get old in other’s eyes!”

“Sure, whatever you say.” Keith rolled his eyes, and whether it was out of annoyance or fondness was kept to himself.

The two followed on the path after Katie and Nyma. It didn’t take long for Nyma to pause again, turning around to glance at the pair.

_ Take a picture, it’ll last longer. _

Keith was very tempted to say it, biting his tongue to stop himself. He felt his jaw lock as she turned back around, whispering something to Katie as she continued forward.

Beside him he could feel Lance shift closer to him. There was an even slighter movement, and in an instant, Keith could feel the hesitant touch of slim fingers on his shoulder blade.

He turned slightly, keeping his attention on Lance. Through the darkness, he could see the other lean in closer with a smirk.

“When do we plan on scaring her shitless?” he whispered into his ear. Hiking his shoulders to his ears and shivering, Keith turned back to look ahead of them. 

He hated how Lance affected him.

“When it turns three am. Let’s say you’re feeling sick and need to go sit in the car for a bit. We’ll film us scaring them as a prank. Yeah?”

“I like that idea!” 

_ Of course he would. _

Lance’s fingers trailed from his shoulder down his arm. Keith hesitantly relaxed his shoulder, dropping his hand beside him.

Was Lance trying to grab his hand? It wouldn’t be the first time he has, but, Katie is filming in front of them and they’re surely in the shot, and besides, with how quick Nyma would turn around there’s no way she could catch if they were holding hands or not.

So there was no reason to hold hands, right?

He felt Lance’s fingers at his wrist, where his sweatshirt ended and his bare skin was exposed. His hand lingered there for a few seconds before pulling back.

A shallow breath escaped Keith, and out of habit he pressed his lips together.

“We’re going to stop in the middle of the cemetery. The cemetery goes on for about three or four miles, but the middle of it has a large tree.” Katie began to speak louder the further they ventured away from street lights. 

“This estate used to be a mansion, it was torn down in the early 1900’s. The owners of the mansion had two twins, people said they used to climb the tree when they ran away from their ‘sitter’. They said she was evil, possessed even. One day they climbed up the tree as she chased them.. Apparently she pushed them out of the tree and they both died on impact. She hung herself after from the same tree.”

Nyma stopped in her tracks, lowering her camera.

“You’re joking, right?”

Katie paused beside her. “No, I’m not. You can look it up, the story’s everywhere.”

“That story’s real, right?” Lance whispered from beside him.

“Yeah. Although, I wouldn’t really say it’s haunted. Last time we came here nothing really happened. Shiro and I kind of just fell asleep and Allura and Katie stayed awake. They said they saw shadows, but nothing showed up in the footage. Rough evidence, if you ask me,” Keith replied, thinking back on their last trip to the cemetery. Honestly, nothing eventful happened at all except for the group trying to scare each other. 

Turning, he saw Lance nod in response.

“Wait, didn’t you just tell me not to fall asleep because I would like, get possessed or something?” Stopping in his tracks, Lance delt him a death stare.

Continuing on, Keith waved his hand in a dismissal motion. “I may have lied to get you up.”

“Oh, it’s on Kogane.”

* * *

By the time they had made it to the graveyard, it was somewhere between twelve and one in the morning. Nyma was beginning to become a bit skittish, jumping at the rustles of leaves as Katie continued to mess with her with even more haunted stories. At the tree, they began their over-night setup, setting up the cameras, recorders, and mics, as well as their sleeping bags.

When Lance plopped the bag off his shoulders and dove to the ground, he let out a heavy sigh and rubbed at his shoulder. “I’m exhausted now. How do you carry that stuff every time you do an overnight?”

Simply shrugging, Keith began unpacking his stuff as well. Unrolling a large sleeping bag, and placing it down beside Lance, he shrugged. “I work out a lot. Sometimes it’s a bit much, but for the most part, I’m used to it.”

With half-shut eyes, Lance nodded, rolling onto the sleeping bag once Keith was done rolling it out. “You don’t mind if I just...”

“You’re fine,” Keith was quick to say. He watched as Lance gave him a quick thumbs-up, curling up onto his side, his shoulders popping as he stretched out his arms.

“We can get some shut-eye and leave the recorders going, and see if we get anything,” Katie spoke loudly from a few feet away, motioning to Keith.

“I’ll be right back,” Keith said, stretching out his own arms. Taking Lance’s groan as an okay, he walked over to where Katie and Nyma had finished setting up their cameras and sleeping bags. 

Katie looked up at him, flashing a quick toothy grin and smile. “The camera is just going to be set up on Nyma and me, as well as the recorders. It would be too hard to fit everyone in the shot.”

Keith felt an instant rush of relief. No footage of Lance and Keith would be making it into the final cut. No way for the audience to think they’re actually  _ dating _ or something. Because surely, if he and Lance didn’t cuddle up together, Nyma would make some sort of remark.

_ Just, rough it out. _

“Okay, that sounds good.” Motioning to where Lance laid still on the sleeping bag, he pulled his phone from his pocket. “I think Lance is ready for a nap. What time were you planning on getting up again, so I can set a timer?”

Nyma blew out a heavy breath. She folded her arms over her chest. Taking her into accordance, Keith didn’t miss the goosebumps on her legs and the way her heels were definitely stuck in the grass right now. He did all he could to keep a straight face once she opened her mouth. “Katie said we should be up at three am for the witching hour. I think that’s absolute bull. Also, it’s freezing out! How are you two not cold?”

_ Well, we wore actual clothes, unlike you. _

“We’re used to this stuff,” Katie supplied instead. “We usually bring extra layers anyway. Sure, it’s California, but night trips can get really cold sometimes.”

Sighing again, Nyma rolled her neck out, looking up at the sky. “I’ll be sure to take that into consideration next time.” Her tone was nasty, but not very directed at Katie. It sounded like she was more mad at the world for the temperature change.

Dismissing her, Keith set an alarm for two forty am. “Are we going to do any rituals?” Lifting his head, he caught Katie’s steady stare.

“I was thinking to just to a seance of some sort,” Katie responded, and then gave a sly wink.

“At first, she said she wanted to that, whatever it’s called board! I swear, she’s utterly crazy,” Nyma groaned out before sitting down on her own sleeping bag beside, eyeing Keith with what he could only pinpoint as anger.

“Right...” He pocketed his phone, turning back to Katie. “Lance and I’ll be good to go then. I’m going to go shut my eyes for a bit too.”

“Don’t do anything gross over there,” Nyma barker. “I have a perfect view of you two from here, and I don’t need my dreams tainted!”

Without even a reaction, he nodded, waved goodbye, and then walked back over to where Lance was laying down.

What was Nyma even trying to imply? That they’d do the dirty out in a cemetery? 

_ Ew... She’s so weird. _

Making his way back to Lance, he kneeled down beside his form. Placing a soft hand on his side, he shook him slightly. “Hey, I know you’re tired but do you mind getting up for just a second so you don’t freeze to death?”

Turning on his back, Lance opened his eyes. He stared up at the stars for a moment before putting his attention on Keith. “I really wouldn’t mind freezing to death right now if it meant not having to deal with Nyma any longer.”

Rolling his eyes, and grabbing onto Lance’s arms, he pulled him to his feet. Lance groaned in protest, dropping Keith’s hands and slumping against his chest.

Keith could feel the way his heart practically skipped a beat when he felt a breath of hot air against his neck. Trying to recover from the effects of that, he pushed at Lance’s arms with barely any force. “I shouldn’t have told you earlier I was joking about falling asleep and getting possessed. Maybe then you’d stop being all tired.”

Giving into Keith’s pushes, Lance stood up straight. “You’re right. That’s on you though, Keithers.”

With a few moments of awkward fumbling and trying to get comfortable, Keith slid into the sleeping bag first after toeing his shoes off (that was after Lance almost had a meltdown about him even trying to attempt getting into the sleeping bag with his shoes on). Holding his breath, Keith tried to not even move as Lance slipped in tightly beside him, their shoulders and sides brushing, and then their legs and feet. Once Lance had fully gotten in, he didn’t waste any time before rolling over into Keith as he had done a few mornings ago. 

Lance’s head dropped into his shoulder, his nose brushing up onto the side of his neck, their chests and hips meeting. A slip of a strangled breath left Keith when he felt a warm hand on his hip, the other beside his neck.

“Is this okay?” Lance mumbled into the side of his neck. There was silence for a moment as Keith looked up absentmindedly at the sky.

If Nyma’s annoying voice didn’t kill him tonight, this was going to.

He was highly aware of everywhere their bodies met, despite the fact of them both wearing multiple layers of clothes. They had been in this same position before with fewer layers, but that had only been a few minutes at best. The thought of staying like this the whole night made Keith’s blood run hot.

“Yeah,” he replied slowly. He wrapped one arm around Lance’s side, and the other on his hip. A sigh of content left Lance as he eased into Keith.

How did this not affect Lance in the ways it affected Keith? Or, at least, make him feel weirded out? It was like Lance didn’t even care, like he  _ enjoyed _ this.

Of course, Keith enjoyed this. It was hard not to when a very warm, very attractive guy was practically all over you half the time, but at the same time, this was all new territory for him. He’d never cuddled up like this with someone, let alone hold someone’s hand that wasn’t a “parental” figure to him.

And it pained him to think this was all fake anyway. To think this wouldn’t last longer than another three weeks. To think that Lance was only willing to snuggle up like this to keep himself away from that she-devil and keep his social media outlook the same.

He knew Lance wasn’t using him. Obviously, they were friends before all this anyway.

But in every way, it hurt. It hurt to know he was going to have to let it all go before he even got comfortable with it. That they’d just go back to being just friends once Nyma was out of the picture.

The worst thought though was, the possibility their friendship could change because of it.

That Lance would be all weirded out after. That maybe he’d stop hanging out with him, stop being so close, stop seeking him out-

“Goodnight, Keith.”

Lance’s mumbles words pulled him from his shit load of thoughts. The way his breath hit the side of his neck, and oh god, he could have sworn he felt Lance’s lips for a moment.

With a deep breath, Keith tilted his head up a bit more to give Lance room. He felt the way Lance had moved up slightly, digging his face right back into the crook of his neck.

“Goodnight, Lance.”

It wasn’t like Keith got much sleep in those two hours. Not with Lance on top of him like that. Not with how from the corner of his eye, he could see Nyma sitting up every once in a while, looking around her before peering over at them.

He could feel every breath Lance made, and at one point, the hand that had been gripping his hip moved up, fingertips digging under a layer of sweatshirt and shirt, sprawling across his stomach. Lance’s hands were warm when they met with his stomach. It made him flinch almost, sucking in his stomach and closing his eyes.

Don’t be weird about it, was all he could think. But it was hard not to savor the touch when every once in awhile Lance’s fingers would twitch, dragging down or up his stomach.

He found out that Lance was a rather still and quiet sleeper. The only movements he had made was the slight movement of fingers, and maybe once or twice when he shifted on his chest, digging his head into Keith’s shoulder.

When Keith had finally started to drift off to sleep, he felt the vibrations of his phone in his pocket. At first, he did nothing about it, not wanting to move his heavy limbs or open his heavy eyes. But, his phone was in the front pocket of his jeans, and Lance could definitely feel it.

After a few times of it going off, Lance groaned deep and heavy into Keith’s neck. He shifted, turning his head in the opposite direction, hands moving and arms curling in as he stretched them.

Keith, for the life of him, just couldn’t open his eyes. He was so close to finally falling asleep. He almost wanted to just reverse time and instead of basking in Lance’s touch, actually sleep.

_ Almost. _

_ But he definitely didn’t regret it. _

When he finally mustered up opening his eyes, he was almost half startled to death when two owlish eyes were blinking down at him. With a sheepish smile, he felt a hesitant hand on his hip, moving down and down closer to the pocket of his jeans.

“Hello there sleeping beauty,” Lance greeted, almost as lively as he’d usually be.

Too tired to respond, Keith groaned in response, clamming his eyes shut.

It wasn’t until he felt his phone being plucked out of his pocket and the buzzing stopping that he opened his eyes again. Lance was still on him, phone in hand. Now, the phone light was illuminating off his face, and Keith kept his mouth shut about the comment of how beautiful he was that he wanted to desperately make.

“It’s only two forty-five in the morning? It feels way later- earlier? Than that?” Lance seemed confused as he stared at the screen.

The two stayed in the same position for a few moments, neither making the effort to move. At one point, they caught eyes again, giving ea co other questionable and confused looks before Keith finally said something.

“Didn’t you want to scare Nyma?” His voice was low and husky, he could feel how it vibrated in his own chest. Lance hesitantly nodding before dropping the phone at Keith’s side, the light going out.

They were plunged into darkness, the only light coming from the camera and recorders set up a few feet away.

“Um- yeah. I did.”

“I wanted to make sure we could go over the plan before they woke up at three, you were sleepy earlier so I didn’t want to bother you.”

“Awe! How thoughtful!” Lance basically cooed.

Keith sighed. He wanted to be annoyed at Lance’s enthusiasm at this time, but it was hard to be when Lance started to squirm out of his arms, rolling to the side of him. 

“So, we’re going to pretend you’re sick and walk back to the truck, right?” Keith spoke, right before he yawned.

“Why do I have to be the one pretending to be sick?”

“Uh, do you not want to be?”

“No, I don’t want to seem weak!”

“Being sick has nothing to do with being weak, you know.”

“Of course it does. Only the weak get sick.”

“So if I was the one pretending to be sick, I would be weak?”

At that, Lance stuck his bottom lip out. “You know that’s not what I meant,” he sighed, dragging a hand down his face. “Let’s just, get this show on the road.” He shrugged out of the sleeping bag first, standing up beside Keith.

Keith couldn’t miss the way he saw Lance peer over Nyma.

God.

He wishes he didn't see it.


End file.
